A spokesman for the NSW Department of Education told The Sydney Morning Herald that there were no plans to close schools due to the heat despite previous suggestions to the contrary.

He said: "Schools are closed only in extreme circumstances, such as during fire or flood or for health and safety reasons. Hot weather is generally not considered to be an emergency."

According to The Bureau of Meteorology, the previous record high for a November day in Sydney, the capital of New South Wales, was 41.8C, recorded in 1982.

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